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In this episode we speak to Jamie Airnes, CEO of Cornish Lithium, a pioneering mineral extraction company focused on extracting lithium from hard rock and geothermal waters in Cornwall, in the UK. The company that is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year and they appeared within the first few episode of starting this podcast in 2018 when the business was still very much an exploration story.
So 10 years on, it’s developing two different routes to extracting lithium from Cornwall, from hard rock and geothermal waters, as it looks to establish a domestic source of this increasingly important critical mineral for the UK.
Jamie joins us to discuss how far the company has come, the technology behind its two extraction routes, finding the skills and people needed to build a new UK lithium industry and what differentiates its approach from other lithium projects.
We’ll also look at why domestic lithium production matters to the UK, what support is needed from Government, and where Jamie sees Cornish Lithium and the wider UK mining industry over the next 5-10 years from now.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Cornish Lithium is taking a dual-track approach by developing both hard-rock extraction at Trelavour and direct lithium extraction from geothermal brines across Cornwall.
- The company’s patented "Lepidico" (L-Max/L-OH / now Licontrol) hydrometallurgical processing enables more efficient, lower-energy lithium refining with reduced water use and minimal waste.
- Developing domestic supply is essential to meet the UK government’s mandate of 50,000 tonnes per year by 2035, helping end complete reliance on foreign imports and mitigating global price volatility.
- Retaining regional mining talent and collaborating with educational institutions and government are vital to scaling the workforce and delivering a projected £5 billion economic impact to Cornwall.
BEST MOMENTS
"The reality is, it's very very similar in many many ways... The subsurface is really important. It’s really important to understand your subsurface in any project, any development project."
"We have an insatiable demand for electrification, whether it's in the handheld devices that we use, whether it's in electric cars or BESS... Today we produce zero, and I'm a firm believer that where we have the opportunity to do so, we should be producing our own."
"The supply and demand curves just now are acutely balanced, and they are subject to potential manipulation or indeed manipulation... China controls about 70% of the global supply chain."
"Price certainty is really important, and we need the government to stand up, to recognise the challenge, and to work with industry and with Cornish Lithium to provide a solution that stands up our projects and stands up our industry."
VALUABLE RESOURCES
Mail: rob@mining-international.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/
X: https://twitter.com/MiningRobTyson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DigDeepTheMiningPodcast
Web: http://www.mining-international.org
GUEST RESOURCES
Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/cornishlithium
Website: https://cornishlithium.com/
Email: info@cornishlithium.com
Social media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/17936814/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cornishlithium/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cornish_lithium
X: https://x.com/CornishLithium
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cornishlithium
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cornishlithium8136
CONTACT METHOD
rob@mining-international.org
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/
Podcast Description
Rob Tyson is an established recruiter in the mining and quarrying sector and decided to produce the “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast to provide valuable and informative content around the mining industry. He has a passion and desire to promote the industry and the podcast aims to offer the mining community an insight into people’s experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.
This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
